A Fine Queen, a Hot Summer's Night
by EmpressAmi
Summary: Oneshot turned into story. Sarah and Jareth are in love and full of passion. He visits her every night until she can return to the Underground and become his queen. This is Sarah's last year of college, meaning it will be the last year she will ever spend with her mortal friends and family. Can Sarah leave them to take her place as Goblin Queen?
1. Chapter 1

A mid-summer rain shower always put a smile on Sarah's face. She didn't know why but there was just something so soothing about the tiny drops of liquid that cascaded down her window. She would sit for hours just gazing out of her apartment window, watching the droplets dance down from the sky and turn her neighbourhood into a wetland wonderland. On this particular night the sunset had turned the sky a beautiful golden colour. It looked radiant, Sarah thought, and the glare from the raindrops only magnified it's beauty tenfold.

Sarah sighed, contentedly. She knew he would be here soon. He always arrived as the sun was setting, and as usual she had butterflies in her stomach. Her friends had recently commented on Sarah's strange behaviour; the dreamy-eyed looks, the constant humming of soft, sweet melodies and the smile that was always plastered across her face. It was classic loved-up symptoms, and they often quizzed her as to who the special guy was. "Oh, nobody" she would constantly tell them. Of course, she couldn't reveal the true identity of her love. They probably jus thought it was some guy from college or perhaps the son of one of her parent's friends. But she was completely smitten, and this she could not deny.

Although it was raining the night was still very warm. Sarah was dressed plainly; a white vest top with spaghetti straps and denim shorts that rested mid-thigh and a pair of white pumps that had sparkly gems on the front of them. Sarah never was one of those girls who applied layer upon layer of make up and fake tan to herself. Nor did she have the wish to own a wardrobe of designer clothes. She was a simple girl with simple values.

Sarah stared at a baby bird outside her window, bathing in the small puddle that the rain now produced. She watched, mesmerised at it flitted and jumped about in the small pool of water, so innocent and happy. Sarah loved nature. As a child she felt she had a special connection with animals and nature, and she would spend hours writing poetry about beautiful summer days and sweet-smelling roses and all sorts of little animals, sometimes even mythical ones.

"Always transfixed with the power of nature," Sarah's smile deepened and she whirled around, greeted by the man she loved. Her heart still skipped a beat when she saw him. He was dressed in a long white shirt, black pants and black boots that came below his knees.

"Jareth!" She squealed with delight, as she raced over and positively jumped into his arms.

He chuckled softly, holding onto her tightly as though he may never let her go.

"Hello, precious," He purred into her ear, kissing the top of her head, burying his nose into her soft hair. It smelled mouth-watering, like honey and peaches, he noted.

"I missed you so much," she whispered into his chest, but it was loud enough for him to hear.

Jareth carried Sarah over to her queen size bed and gently lay her down amongst all her pink and purple fluffy, glittery pillows. Sarah was such a girlie girl. Her room was filled with fluffy teddy bears, pink things, and sparkles.

Sitting down on the edge of the bed beside her he sated lovingly at his beloved.

"I was only here last night, precious," He reasoned as he took her hand into his own, which was never gloved when he visited her. His thumb began tracing circles on the back of her hand, making her feel slightly ticklish. Sarah smiled at this feeling.

" I know," She eventually said, "but I hate being away from you, for any length of time. Why can't I just come with you now and live in the Underground ?"

Jareth looked into her soft hazel eyes and smiled. If there was one thing his Sarah was, it was impatient. Still he loved her all the more.

"Now love, we've already had this discussion," His voice was still caring but had a hint of sternness in it.

"You can come and spend eternity with me after you finish college".

Sarah sighed quietly and looked at him. She wished more than anything that he would just scoop her up and whisk her away to the Goblin City. Jareth had promised to do it the moment she graduated, insisting it would be best for her to finish her writing course first. Sarah was so passionate about writing and Jareth had read some of her work. She wrote the most wonderful fairytales, her talent clear to see.

"Ok," She said, admitting defeat, and not for the first time on this subject.

"It's not that long to wait," He replied gently, stroking her long chocolate locks behind her ears.

"Ha! Easy for you to say, Goblin King," She smiled as he raised his eyebrows.

"What did you say?" He replied.

"One year is nothing to you. You live forever!" Sarah sat up on her bed and crossed her arms, smiling.

"One year to a human is soooo long. In fact, I may lose interest by then". She casually toyed with a strand of hair, not meeting his eye.

Jareth stood up and towered over her, hand on his hips

"Is that so?" He said with playfulness in his voice.

"Yes. I think you should just leave now. Be gone Goblin King!" Sarah waved her hand in a shooing manner tried so hard to keep the smile off her face. She loved this man with all her heart and could never possibly imagine wanting to leave him.

At the flash of a light Jareth was on top of her bed, pushing her back down onto her pillows. Sarah started giggling like a schoolgirl. He held her arms above her head with one hand and steadied himself with the other.. His lips were so close to hers and she could see a small but sexy smile on them.

"I don't think so, precious". His voice came out like silk, making goose bumps appear on her skin. Although the mood was light hearted, she could sense another type of emotion, but couldn't place her finger on what it was.

"And if you ever speak to me in that manner again," He kissed her ripe red lips " I'm afraid I will have to punish you." He placed another firm kiss on her lips that made Sarah tingle in certain areas. Jareth let go of her wrists and moved his hand over to cup her face. As the kiss deepened he slowly moved his fingers down her neck and traced them down the valley between her breasts. A small moan escaped Sarah as she raked her fingers up and down Jareth's back, desperate to feel his naked skin. After a minute, to Sarah's disappointment, Jareth pulled back, laughing at the look on her face.

"You'd better get ready for bed, my love. It's getting late and you have to get up early in the morning." he said, placing one last kiss on her lips. Sarah sighed and swung her legs over the side of her bed and walked over to her wardrobe. It was just like him to tease her. She grabbed her nightdress and headed to her en suite. Sarah had purposefully chosen a black lacy baby doll nightdress that she knew would drive Jareth crazy. It covered her in all the right places and she knew he would never be able to resist her in it. And just for good measure, she didn't wear a bra. She twirled about in front of the mirror, satisfied that she was ready for bed.

When Sarah exited the en suite she found Jareth casually lying on her bed, both arms rested behind his head, one leg over the other. She also noticed he had taken off his boots. Sarah saw his eyes widen with lust when he clapped them on her nightdress. Sarah did her best model runway walk slowly over to the other side of her bed and stood in front of it. She smiled as Jareth drank in the sight of her barely covered body.

"What do think?" She asked provocatively.

"Lovely," He purred, pulling back the sheets for her.

Sarah slid into bed and Jareth did the same. They did this every night.; she slept on her left side so her back was always to Jareth's chest and she fell asleep with his arms wrapped around her. Some nights they made love, other nights Jareth was just happy to hold her in his arms and they would talk and joke for a while before falling asleep. But this particular night Jareth was aroused by Sarah's revealing nightdress. He knew she planned this. God she was so devious!

Sarah grinned when she felt his hand stroking her tummy, a clear indicator that they would making their way upwards soon. His lips caressed the back of her neck and he planted kisses over her ear, occasionally nibbling on her earlobe. Just as Sarah predicted, Jareth's hand travelled up her body and smoothed over her right breast as he began to fondle it. He could feel her nipple harden under the flimsy lacy material and this made his lower region stiffen.

Sarah rolled from her side to her back as Jareth left a trail of kisses leading from her neck down to her breasts. Sarah moaned with pleasure and frustration. She wished he would rip the nightdress off her instead of kissing her through it. He was teasing her and they both knew it.

She felt warmth on her thigh as Jareth's hand caressed it, moving his touch further and further up her leg until he reached her silk panties, causing her to gasp . They were wet already. Sarah began clawing at Jareth's white shirt, pulling it off to reveal his muscled chest.

His lips came crashing down on top of hers and his tongue tickled the entrance, seeking admission to her own tongue. She didn't have to think twice before letting him in and their tongues entwining together made her even more wanting of him. So much that she thought she was going to slap him if he didn't take her.

"Jareth," She breathed as he moved his head down to kiss her stomach.

"Yes, my love?" He answered.

"Please!"

Jareth smiled, he knew she was at his mercy. This was what she got for trying to trick him.

"Please what?" he asked with fake confusion in his voice.

Sarah let out a loud gasp as his hands came up to massage both her nipples. He was driving her wild!

"Don't make me beg," she requested, and this made him grin even more.

"I'm sure I don't know what you are talking about," he said amusingly, planting a kiss on her breast.

"You're so cruel Jareth."

He leaned in and whispered seductively "because you want me to be, Sarah." His voice made her body tremble. Oh how she hated when he was in control, and yet loved it at the same time.

His hand brushed quickly over her panties and once more she took in a sharp breath.

"Now what where you saying, love?"

Sarah could take no more, she had to give in to his sexy game.

"Fine! Please Jareth, please make love to me. I want you to give me pleasure." Jareth grinned once more. "I don't think that's enough to change my mind."

"For the love of God just take me! Now!" She snapped at him.

He laughed at her pleading and kissed her sweetly on the lips.

"You must learn to be patient, precious."

Sarah flew up from her bed and began tugging at his pants

"Screw patience!" she yelled.

Of all the times they had made love, Jareth had never seen her act this wildly before; she was like a lioness cornering an antelope. This just made Jareth even more hard and he felt his erection pressing against his pants. Wriggling out of them he flung them aside and pushed her back down onto the bed with a roar. Jareth pulled her nightdress off and threw it over his head, exposing her perfect breasts. He eyed them up hungrily before clamping his mouth down on them, twisting and teasing them with his tongue. Sarah threw her arms above her head, enjoying his tantalizing assault on her nipples. Once again his silk-like fingers voyaged down her midriff and curled as they touched her drenched panties. With one bear-like swipe he ripped them off and slung them into who knows where. He knew she was eager to have him inside her, and he was too, but he simply did not like to rush things, especially things that concerned his beloved Sarah.

Prying her legs apart, Jareth positioned his head above her sex. How it turned him on to see her area so moist for him. Leaning closer to it, he flicked out his tongue and took one long enticing lick. Sarah immediately groaned and bucked her hips forward, her pace quickening with each tortuous lick of his skilled tongue. She gripped at his hair, her fingers tightening as she got closer and closer to releasing the tension building up in her belly.

Jareth thrust his tongue in deeper and deeper, sending Sarah into a spiral of ecstasy as she called his name over and over.

Jareth could not control his fiery Fae nature. She was turning him on and he had to have her now. Grabbing her hips he plunged himself inside of her and she let out another loud moan of pleasure. Their hips moved together, slow at first then becoming faster and faster as their bodies cried for more as pure desire burned inside them both. Their breathing became desperate gasps for air as they made passionate, mad love to each other, forgetting about everything else around them. At this moment it was only the two of them in the world.

Jareth and Sarah called out each others name as they climaxed together, wave after wave of pleasure washing over them both. His hand held her hips firmly in place as they released their passion. Sarah had never experienced an orgasm with such power before. She never wanted it to end.

But her body trembled as her sensitive nerves came back down off their high. As their breathing started to return to normal, Jareth looked into Sarah's eyes. He truly felt privileged to have fallen in love with a woman as kind and sensitive, not to mention breathtakingly beautiful as her. Throughout all the centuries he lived through, he had never once felt complete until he met Sarah. And once she graduated college and came to the Underground he would make her his queen. He couldn't imagine being happier, and hoped she would be too.

But he needn't have worried about Sarah's happiness; she was besotted with him, and didn't want to spend her life with anyone else.

"I love you, Jareth" It was little more than a whisper.

Jareth placed one adoring kiss on the tip of her nose and smiled at his beautiful soul mate.

"And I love you too, precious."

Jareth gently pulled his body back, careful not to make Sarah uncomfortable and flopped down on the bed beside her. Sarah rolled onto her side, her usual sleeping position, and Jareth enveloped her in his arms. She always felt so protected and loved when he did that. She stretched out her arm to turn her bedside lamp off as Jareth left sweet kisses in her hair.

As they lay in the darkness together, Sarah began to feel her eyes closing, but she still had thoughts going through her head. Thoughts about how dramatically her life will change when she becomes Goblin Queen. Could she really rule a magical land filled with creatures that Sarah had been brought up to believe only existed in fairytales? Sometimes she felt so overwhelmed by the thought of it.

"Jareth?" She asked.

"Yes?" He answered, slightly raising his head. Perhaps surprised that she was still awake.

Sarah pulled the sheets up closer to her.

"Do you think I would make a good queen?"

Jareth blinked. Was this strong, confident woman really asking this question?

"Well of course you will. Why would you think otherwise?"

She thought for a moment before answering him. She didn't want to sound like a complete and utter fool, but couldn't help expressing her doubts.

"I don't know. Sometimes when I think about all the responsibilities it must entail I feel out of my depth. I mean, this is an entire kingdom we're talking about here. A magical kingdom, with magical creatures. And I am a mere human. I don't know, maybe I'm just not cut out to be a queen." Her voice trailed off into the darkness and she could feel tears approaching her eyes at the thought of letting him down.

Jareth lifted his hand and stroked her hair behind her ear- something he always did to calm her down or make her feel better.

"I won't lie to you precious, it will take some time for you to settle down. There will probably be times where you feel frustrated and will just want to give up. And that's fine. Because this is a huge adjustment for you, which will take some getting used to."

He snuggled his head into the back of her head, breathing in the glorious scent of her hair.

"You have nothing to worry about, Sarah. I would not have chosen you as my Queen if I did not think you were strong enough to take on the role"

Sarah's doubts faded a little. She knew Jareth was an honest man and would never lie to her.

"Do you really think that?"

He smiled into her hair and stroked her arm gently.

"Yes. I really think that. You will make a fine queen. And I will be there right by your side to guide you."

It was Sarah's turn to smile. Jareth always knew what to say to lift her spirits.

"Thank you," she said ever so softly. Jareth leaned over and kissed her cheek. It was a long adoring kiss that made Sarah's heart melt.

"Now hush, love. You need your rest for college tomorrow."

On that note, Sarah gave into the sleep that was beckoning her, dreaming of her new life as Goblin Queen.

Well that's it guys I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed taking a crack at writing it (first time writing a sensual story). Originally it was going to be a oneshot, but if you think I should turn it into a story drop me a review and let me know.

Ami xxx


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Hi guys. So I liked the idea for this fic so much I decided to turn it from a one-shot to a story! I hope you like it too. And to the two people who reviewed my first chapter, thank you so much! It put a smile on my face! And to the person who added my story to their favourites list, I'm honoured! Thanks a bunch. Ok, so lets take a look at the next chapter guys, I really hope it gets positive feedback too :-)

Oh, and please note that this story is set in modern day times. I know the movie was released in the mid-eighties but I was not around at that time to find out what it was like, not being born til a few years later :-)

Sarah hadn't slept properly in four days. Friday evening had just arrived and she sighed with relief. It was late September now and she was back at college. This was her last year and her professor had already so early in the year set the students so many deadlines and tasks that Sarah had no time to do anything else. She often found herself being carried to bed by Jareth at all hours of the morning, because she was working so hard that she fell asleep at her writing desk. Plus she had been given extra hours at her part time job at the local bakery. Her boss Phil had extended the opening hours to 8pm, apparently "so people who worked late could still enjoy delicious home-made confectionaries and not have to worry about rushing to get to the bakery before 5.30pm". She loved both her college course and her job but was in serious need of rest so she talked Phil into letting her have the weekend off. Thank goodness he agreed!

Being the nature lover she was, Sarah adored seeing the green leaves of summer change to shades of red, brown and yellow. The sunsets tended to be darker too compared to their golden summer glow; hues of scarlet and ginger streaked across the sky. And as sunset came earlier in the autumn months, Jareth had started visiting her at and earlier time too.

Sarah thought about how her current life would be but a mere memory when she became Goblin Queen. All of her simple little worries such as making sure a paper was written for class or paying a bill on time would be gone. She would have much bigger things to worry about, she was sure. How strange to think that in just under a year's time she would be ruling the Underground with her love.

The sharp ring of the telephone broke Sarah of her thoughts. Picking it up, she heard her stepmother's voice on the other end. Sarah and Karen had grown close over the past seven years. After nearly 'losing' Toby she had a greater appreciation for her family. Karen was usually quite cheerful, but she sounded apprehensive as she spoke to Sarah.

" Oh, Sarah I'm glad I caught you. I thought you might be out with your friend's tonight."

"Not tonight, Karen," She couldn't go out wit her friends even if she wanted to. She was simply too tired. "Is everything ok?"

She could hear a small sigh and immediately the emotion in Karen's voice darkened. After a moment she spoke.

"It's Toby," She said. Sarah's ears pricked up. She was incredibly protective of her little brother.

"He's not…himself." Karen sighed again, exasperation practically radiating down the phone. Now Sarah was becoming worried too.

"What do you mean?" She asked, concerned.

"The past few weeks he has been coming home from school upset. He just goes straight upstairs, only coming out to eat dinner. That is, if I can get him to actually eat dinner. Most nights he just pushes it around his plate. Your father and I are at our wits end. We've spoken to his school and they said he's doing fine and there no are problems as far as they can see. He won't talk to us and has developed an awful attitude. The other morning your father asked him to go and bring in the paper. And do you know what his reply was?"

"No." said Sarah, slightly bemused.

"He said 'go to hell'" Sarah's jaw dropped. "I don't know where on earth he learnt that from. But I tried to speak to him about it and he just pushed me away."

Sarah's heart sank. She knew Toby would never act in such an inappropriate way. He must be extremely upset about something.

"Oh, Karen, that's dreadful."

"I know. Look, I…I realise this may be a bit of an imposition but can Toby stay with you for a few days? Maybe he needs to be away from us for a while."

Sarah didn't have to think twice. She loved Toby and would do anything for him.

"Of course he can come stay with me. That's not a problem at all. Besides, it would be nice to spend some time with him."

Karen sighed with relief.

"Oh, thank you Sarah. That's just great. I'll pack some clothes for him, and of course I will give you some money for his stay."

"Don't be silly, Karen; he's my brother. I don't need any money to take care of him." Sarah replied, aghast that she would even suggest such a ridiculous thing.

"If you insist. I'll drop him over about eight. See you then."

Placing down the phone, Sarah glanced at the clock. Six-fifteen; the sun would be setting shortly, she could already see the grey-blue sky turning a shade towards navy. Sarah would have time to grab a quick shower before Jareth arrived, so she headed to the bathroom to do so, seizing a large pink fluffy towel on route.

A whirlwind of thoughts flew through Sarah's mind as she lathered shampoo into her hair. What could be wrong with Toby? He was a good kid, worked hard at school (as well as an eight year old could work), and never got into trouble. Perhaps it was about a girl? No, surely he would be too young to have an interest in girls yet. Maybe he was being bullied? But the school said everything was fine. Whatever it was she hoped he could open up to her over the next few days.

Turning the shower off Sarah stepped out and wrapper her towel around her body, and casually used a smaller one to take the wetness off her hair. She then patted her self down and removed the towel, putting on her bathrobe, which of course was pink, soft and fluffy. Looking in the mirror she ran a comb through her wet hair, smoothing out the occasional tangle. Sarah was lucky that she never had to do much to her hair. She just let it hang down, naturally drying itself into soft waves. Jareth had told her it was much prettier when she let it lie the way nature intended rather than straightening it. He couldn't understand why humans used hot iron slates to damage, possibly destroy their hair. But Jareth couldn't understand a lot of things humans did; like botox injections for example. He had listened in horror as Sarah described how men and women painfully injected substances into their face to make it firmer and smoother. He said something along the lines of "butchering oneself," and "tampering with nature." Sarah didn't particularly agree with botox either, but argued with Jareth that he could simply not pass judgement as he was indeed Fae and would never experience a wrinkle in his life. This ended in the two of them agreeing to disagree and a night of his wonderfully delightful "punishment" as he called it.

Walking into her bedroom Sarah opened her wardrobe and mulled over what to wear. It wasn't a particularly cold night but the autumn air had a bit of a bite to it. She settled for a red long-sleeved t-shirt, blue skinny jean and black Uggs to go over the top of them. She laid out her clothes on her bed, examining her ensemble. Yes, this was perfect. Suddenly, long arms wrapped around her waist, causing Sarah to let out a loud yelp of surprise. She heard soft chuckling in her right ear and felt a soft, warm cheek pressing against hers.

"Did I frighten you?" A kiss found its way to back of her wet hair.

"Jareth! You're early." She replied. Not that she minded.

He swept her long damp hair over her left shoulder and began kissing her neck, making Sarah's senses spring to life.

"I think you'll find, precious, that sunset occurred exactly fourteen minutes ago." His silky voice washed over her ears.

Sarah frowned in confusion. How long had she been in the shower for? A glance at her bedside clock told her that it was 7.26pm. She had been in the shower for over an hour! She must have really been lost in her thoughts.

Jareth inhaled very loudly and let out an exhale with an "Ahh,"

"You smell divine." Sarah felt Jareth's hands snaking up her sides "I love when you're just out of the shower. Your skin is like silk". Normally Sarah would give into this without a thought, but Karen would be driving Toby over shortly and she had to get dressed. She felt his hands making a beeline for the knot that was holding her robe closed. With all her will-power she pushed them away and turned round.

"I can't." She whispered.

Jareth had a look on his face of half surprise, half rejection.

"What's the matter, love?" He asked dejectedly.

Sarah sighed and turned round to her bed, quickly tossed her robe to the floor and at the speed of light threw on her bra and panties. Jareth's eyes couldn't focus on anything else but her peach-like bottom.

"I'm sorry Jareth. But something's wrong with Toby. Dad and Karen said he's been depressed and angry lately. They're really worried about him. And I am too." In an instant and to Jareth's dismay, her top and jeans were now on. Jareth frowned in confusion .

"That doesn't sound like the little fella." Jareth had never encountered Toby again since he was a wished-away babe in his Labyrinth, but Sarah had told him over the past two years about how happy, bright, smart and funny he was.

"It's not like him in the slightest. He's coming to stay with me for a few days. I want to find out what's wrong and see if I can help him."

Jareth stared at her with adoration as she sat on her bed and pulled her purple polka dot socks on and then her black Uggs over them.

"My Sarah, always so caring." He whispered. Sarah smiled at him. He noticed it wasn't her usual beautiful smile, it was quite a small smile that didn't even reach her eyes. It was almost fake. Clearly she was upset about Toby's unusual behaviour. Sarah was a sensitive soul. It was one of the many things he loved about her.

He scooped her up in his arms and sat down on the end of her bed, cradling her. He began his usual ritual of stroking her hair to comfort her.

"I'm sure it's nothing that can't be resolved easily, precious."

Sarah's soul hurt when things weren't the way they should be with Toby, and Jareth felt the very same way about Sarah. She lay her head on his chest and prayed that he was correct. Sarah always found it soothing when Jareth stroked her hair and she didn't quite know why. He started to hum a sweet song into her hair. His voice was so beautiful. After a minute Sarah began to feel her eyelids droop. She was so exhausted and just wanted to sleep. Maybe if she just closed them for just five minutes it would give her some extra energy. Just five minutes, that was all…

BANG BANG BANG. Sarah nearly jumped out of her skin. Jareth had to tighten his grip on her to stop her falling out of his arms.

"Sssh, love, it's just the door." Sarah looked at the clock. It was 8.07. She had fallen asleep and Karen was here with Toby. She wriggled out of Jareth's arms and shouted a "coming now" out into the hall.

"Jareth! Why did you let me fall asleep? And why didn't you waken me?" She said angrily at him as she ran a brush through her now-dry hair.

"You clearly needed to sleep. And you looked so peaceful and beautiful, I didn't want to waken you." She couldn't help but smile at him. He was so affectionate. He got away with everything! Jareth kissed her on the lips and cupped her face.

"I'll return later, precious." he said and vanished in a cloud of glitter.

Sarah ran down her hall and opened her door to see Karen and Toby. She smiled brightly at them both and stood aside to let them in.

"Hi guys," She said cheerfully. Toby smiled back but it was short-lived. She knew from smiling at Jareth like that earlier that it wasn't a real smile. "Toby why don't you go on in and watch TV."

" 'Kay" He grunted and wandered into Sarah's living room.

Sarah looked at Karen. She had bags under her eyes and appeared to have lost weight recently. Was Toby really that much of a handful?

"Sarah, I can't thank you enough for doing this." She said.

"Not at all." Sarah replied brightly. Karen handed her a blue and red Spider Man backpack.

"Here's his clothes. I've packed some extra shoes in case he jumps into puddles and gets the ones he's wearing filthy, as he has been doing recently" Sarah couldn't help grinning at the slight annoyance in Karen's voice. Boys will be boys, she reasoned.

"And also he's on an antibiotic for an ear infection." Karen added. Sarah looked at her. The child has had nothing but ear and throat infections over the past 3 months.

"Another one?" She asked unbelievably. Karen sighed.

"We just can't understand why he keeps getting them. The doctor can find no valid cause for it. Anyway, he has to take it three times a day after eating. He already had his last dose after dinner so won't need another one until breakfast."

"No problem," She replied taking the backpack from her.

"I'll be back on Sunday at around 7 o'clock to pick him up. If you have any problems though, call us and we will pick him up earlier. I don't want you to be putting up with him if he starts getting too intolerable." He eyebrows fused together with a frown.

"We'll be fine Karen. Don't worry, try to enjoy the weekend." Heaven knows she looked like she needed to.

"Ok then. I'll see you Sunday."

"Bye," Sarah called and closed the door as Karen walked away.

She walked into her guest room and took Toby's clothes out to hang in the wardrobe. She then took the little packet of antibiotics and placed them into a cupboard in her kitchen where she kept her own medicines. Sarah walked back through the hall and joined Toby in the living room, sitting on the purple sofa adjacent to him. He didn't look at her, just continued to watch cartoons.

"Hey Toby." She said softly. He never replied. He didn't even look away from the screen. Sarah got up and walked over to where he was sitting and sat beside him.

"What's going on?" Still no reply. Sarah grabbed the remote and turned off the TV.

"Come on sport, talk to me. What's got you telling dad to go to hell?" She asked gently.

"Nothing," He replied gloomily.

"Well dad and your mom don't think it's nothing. They're worried, buddy. And so am I. Please tell me what the matter is." She pleased with her eyes for him to give her an answer. But Toby just continued staring at the floor, his head bowed down.

Sarah sighed. She wasn't getting any answers out of him tonight. There was no point pressing the issue any further. This saddened her. She only wanted to understand what was happening inside his little head. But he just wasn't for opening up.

"Hey, do you want to watch a movie?" She asked, hoping it would perk him up a bit.

"Sure. But my bed time is 9 o'clock. If we watch a movie won't I be staying up past that? My mom never lets me do that."

Sarah smiled and ruffled his hair.

"You're at your cool big sister's house for the weekend, kiddo. Nobody's going to bed at 9 o'clock." Though Sarah could easily go to bed at 9 o'clock and sleep for twenty-four hours she reckoned. Toby's face lit up and relief washed over Sarah to see him happy. "So what do you want to watch?" She asked.

Toby thought for a moment then said "Jake in my class told me that he watched Jeepers Creepers last week and it was really cool. How about that?"

Sarah's eyes widened. "Toby, we are not watching Jeepers Creepers. Pick another one." Toby frowned.

"But Jake's brother let _him_ watch it," He protested.

"Well Jake's brother is an idiot. You're far too young for that. End of discussion."

Toby sighed angrily. "Fine. Can we watch Harry Potter? Any one will do I guess"

"Much better," Sarah replied and went to pick a Harry Potter film.

Ten minutes later they were sitting on the sofa, both in their pjs, blanket wrapped round them watching The Prisoner of Azkaban. Sarah couldn't take her mind off Toby and why his behaviour had changed so much. Perhaps because it was of his constant ear and throat infections? Sarah could relate; she had had tonsillitis several times over the past few years and found the pain unbearable. Whatever was wrong with the mite she promised herself she would help make it better. The world was going blurry as once again Sarah's eyelids headed south.

She was aware that she was moving, but wasn't walking, or even standing. She could feel her hair swaying from side to side due to a slight rocking. Forcing her eyes open Sarah saw the face of her beloved. He smiled down at her.

"Hello, precious." He whispered very quietly.

"Jareth. What's going on?" Sarah asked, confused.

"You fell asleep while watching the movie. I'm carrying you to your bed."

They entered her bedroom and Jareth lay her gently down on her usual side of the bed, the sheets already pulled back.

"Wait, where's Toby?" Sarah sat back up, worried. Jareth put a hand on her shoulder.

"It's ok, love. He's in bed, he fell asleep too." He reassured her. Sarah's body relaxed with relief. Jareth pulled the sheets up to her chin and cupped her face.

"Did you talk to him?" He asked, concerned. Sarah sighed. She was quit frustrated that Toby wouldn't even acknowledge her when she tried to help him.

"Yes," she replied, her tone soaked with misery. "But I can't say the same about him."

Jareth stood up and walked round to the other side of the bed. Kicking off his boots, he crawled in beside her and took her in his arms.

"Not to worry, precious. I'm sure he was just tired. You were both out for the count when I arrived." He kissed her neck ever so gently.

"Do you really think he's going to tell me what's wrong?" Sarah asked skeptically?

"Of course he will. I imagine it will just take some time." He once again kissed her neck. Sarah sighed quietly. She trusted Jareth with all her heart.

"Good night Jareth," She moaned sleepily.

"Good night, my love." He replied, falling into a peaceful slumber himself.

Meanwhile, Toby was having an awful dream about an army of scary, hideous creatures chasing after him, trying to harm him. He tossed and turned in his sleep and sometimes woke up, his heart pounding, a sheet of cold sweat cloaked over his face. He couldn't tell anyone about these dreams he'd been having recently. He was a big boy now and only babies got scared when they had a bad dream. No, he would handle this himself, he thought. Nobody must ever know.

A/N: Uh-oh, what's wrong with Toby? Why is he acting out of sorts? And why is he having such horrid dreams? Poor Sarah just wants to help her brother, but will Toby ever tell her what's wrong? Stay tuned to find out! :-)

P.S: Apologies if this chapter is not as good as the previous one. It is 2.30 am and I am really quite tired!

Ami xxx


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: Wow! Seven new followers, four new favourites and three new reviews! You guys are the best! I hope you enjoy chapter number three, your positive responses inspired me to write it! :D

The sunlight streamed in through the window and woke Sarah from her wonderful dream. She couldn't remember the exact storyline of it, but one part of it struck her memory; she was holding a beautiful baby girl with soft blonde hair and hazel eyes. The baby felt so warm in her arms and although it was a dream she swore she could smell that 'new baby' smell that parents often talked about. In her dream she cooed over and played peek-a-boo with the little one, who responded with the most adorable smile Sarah had ever seen.

Sarah sat up from her bed and saw Jareth sitting on the bed beside her.

"Good morning, my love. Did you sleep well?" he smiled at her. Sarah realised that his smile was like that of the baby's in her dream. It was her and Jareth's baby that she had been dreaming about.

"You must have had a pleasant dream, of sorts. You were smiling in your sleep." He told her.

"I had an amazing dream." She replied, wrapping her arms around his waist, hugging him tightly. He kissed the top of her head.

"Oh? And what did this dream consist of?" He asked her. Sarah laid her head on Jareth's chest.

"We had a baby." She said frankly, not quite sure what his reaction would be.

He smiled into her hair.

"Is that so?" He replied.

"Yes," Sarah sighed dreamily "She was beautiful."

"Well in that case, she must have looked like her beautiful mother."

Sarah laughed softly.

"No, Jareth, she looked like you. Except for her eyes."

She looked up at him and they shared a kiss. It was a very tender, sweet kiss that made Sarah's heart melt for the love she harboured for this man.

When they broke apart Sarah glanced at her bedside clock. It was 8.16; Toby would probably be up soon. It was time to rise and shine and get ready to start the day. Sarah went to get off the bed when Jareth pulled her back by her waist and threw her back onto the bed, surprising her.

"Where do you think you're going?" He whispered into her ear, kissing her cheek.

Sarah stared at him. Was he really going to start this now? She knew she could never resist his advances, even if she wanted to. He was just so damn sexy, and knew how to turn her on. Jareth lead his lips down Sarah neck, making her give in. He trailed them down to her breasts and began kissing them through her pyjama top. Sarah immediately felt her nipples beginning to respond to his tantalising torture. His teeth began tugging at the neckline of her top and his hands came up to unbutton it. Sarah knew she should have protested against it, but her body didn't want this to stop. Jareth's warm tongue began circling her right nipple as has fingers came up to play with the left one. Quiet moans escaped Sarah's lips. She was totally entranced. Jareth's hand moved down over the top of her pyjama bottoms, caressing the sensitive area with his thumb. He could feel how aroused she was getting. Sarah threw back her head and sighed with pleasure, but knew it couldn't continue. Why must he torture her when they both knew it was too risky to do anything while Toby was staying with Sarah?

Jareth stopped his delicious torment and cupped her face. He planted one long, farewell kiss on her begging lips. When he pulled back, he couldn't help but laugh at the look of outrage on her face. He ran his fingers over her soft curls and gazed down lovingly at her.

"Oh, don't pout, precious. Those luscious lips of yours are too gorgeous to do anything but smile. And to kiss me with, of course." Jareth smiled at her. It was a smile that more often than not allowed Jareth to escape Sarah's anger, and this time was no exception. Damn it, she was so weak for him.

"Well, ok." She said, grudgingly buttoning her pyjama top back up. She playfully grabbed him by the front of his shirt and pulled him forward as if threatening him.

"But next time I'm in charge, and you better do as I command." She told him forcefully. Jareth's eyes darkened and a wicked grin crept across his face, excitement running through him. Sarah vigorously pressed her lips onto his and thrust her tongue into his mouth, furiously stroking it against his, teasing him. Jareth had never seen her act so dominating before, and he wasn't complaining about it either.

"And you'd best not make me angry or _I_ will be the one punishing _you_."

A low growling noise escaped his throat. The tables had turned. He wanted her then and there, but she was already sashaying across the room to her wardrobe to pick out her outfit for the day.

"How I long for the day when I can take you to the Underground and have you all to myself." He walked over behind her and slapped his hand across her backside. She gasped half in pleasure, half in surprise. Jareth put his lips to her ear and whispered: "What a striking queen you will make, precious."

And he was gone.

Thirty minutes later Sarah was dressed and in her apartment kitchen making pancakes with syrup, French toast and bacon; her favourite breakfast. She hoped Toby would like it too and eat at least some of it. He was never a chubby child but had a steady build and Sarah could see that he had lost weight recently. She remembered Karen had told her he hadn't been eating properly, and once again a pang of sadness starting blossoming in the middle of her chest. She heard her guest room door opening and Toby wandered out, still dressed in his pjs.

"Morning sleepyhead." Sarah said brightly to him as he sat down at the table. She looked closer at him and saw he had bags under his eyes. He also looked like he hadn't slept all night. Poor kid.

"Hey." He replied, a hint of grumpiness in his voice.

Sarah flipped over the pancakes in the pan and scooped the omelettes onto two plates. Toby stared into space, appearing lost in his thoughts. There was a silence for a moment until one of Sarah's favourite songs came on the radio. At first she started to hum to the tune, but then broke into song, not holding back.

"I throw my hands up in the air sometimes, sayin' ayo, gotta let go. I wanna celebrate and live my life, sayin' ayo, baby let's go. 'Cause we gone rock this club, we gone go all night. We gone light it up like it's dynamite. 'Cause I told you once, now I've told you-"

"Sarah, what are you doing?" Toby asked. Sarah stared at him, he had a look of awkwardness on his face.

"I'm just singing along to the song, Toby." She answered.

"Please don't. You sound like my pet cat did when she got into a fight with another cat."

"I do not!" Sarah protested, offended. Was this the attitude Karen was talking about? Was her brother lashing out at her? A smile spread across his face told her otherwise. Thank goodness.

Toby burst out laughing.

"You so do!" He started making wailing noises, an attempt to mock Sarah's singing. Sarah started laughing.

"Well, I was going to take you to the arcade today. But just for that I won't bother." She told him, pretending to be hurt.

"The arcade? Wow, my mom hardly ever lets me go there." He said. Sarah put the pancakes and bacon onto their plates and brought them over to the table.

"Does your mom ever let you do anything fun?" She asked, sitting down in front of him to eat.

"She said arcades are a waste of money and encourage gambling." He replied, tucking into his omelette. Sarah rolled her eyes. As much as she loved Karen she could be a tight-ass sometimes.

"Tell you what, after we eat breakfast and you take your antibiotic and get dressed, we'll go to the arcade." She proposed. Little boys were made for arcades, Sarah thought. Toby's eyes lit up.

"Awesome!" He yelled.

Sarah needn't have worried about Toby's appetite, he scoffed his breakfast down, not leaving a crumb behind. Plus he took his antibiotic without any fuss. She was happy to see that he was eating again. As Sarah put their dishes into the dishwasher and turned it on, her cell phone rang.

"Hey, Carly." She said cheerfully. Carly and Sarah had been friends since middle school and had been through thick and thin together. Carly was like a sister to Sarah.

"Guess who's coming over to my parents house on Tuesday night?" She said excitedly. Carly's parents were mega rich and knew a lot of important people. Her dad was CEO of his own company and often had semi-famous people over for dinner at their grand house.

"I don't know, Lady GaGa?" Sarah joked.

"Ha ha." Carly replied back in a friendly tone. "It's Mick Maguire!"

Sarah gasped "No way!" She exclaimed.

"Way!"

Mick Maguire was editor of Au Courant, Sarah's (and no doubt thousands of other women's) absolute favourite magazine.

Carly continued "And my dad told me he's looking for someone to cover one of his article writers for a few months while she's on maternity leave. I told him about you and he invited you over to meet Mick!"

Sarah was speechless. She would cut off her right arm to get a job writing at Au Courant. Yes, her time on the Aboveground was slowly slipping away, but this would just be for a few months, she would be finished in time to leave. Besides she spent a good few years at college, she wanted to put her talent to use at least once.

"Carly, you are the best! Really, I can't thank you enough!"

Carly laughed "I know, I'm wonderful. Listen, I have to go to work now, but I'll call you tomorrow and we can talk about what you're going to wear!"

Sarah rolled her eyes. Carly loved fashion and was studying fashion design at college. Sarah often had to act as her model as Carly sewed, hemmed and altered her creations. Carly's sense of style was bright and modern, with her own quirky touch added to them. Her designs were very pretty, Sarah thought.

"Ok, no problem. Talk to you later." Sarah hung up her cell with a smile on her face. She could potentially be a published writer. She couldn't wait to tell Jareth.

Four tries later and Sarah still couldn't beat Toby at air hockey. The little mite was very good at it, and Sarah for the life of her couldn't get the puck past his quick hands. In fact, she even sulked a little bit after they had finished playing. Toby of course was not a sore winner in any way.

"Ha ha. I win again. Loser." He stuck his tongue out at her cheekily. Sarah raised her eyebrows but couldn't help laugh.

"I'll show you who's a loser! Let's do something I'm good at." She scanned the arcade for something to potentially beat him at. There wasn't a lot to choose from, her and arcades really did not go together.

"Ah ha! I've got it. Let's see how good you are at the dance machine." She smiled, smugly.

Toby gave her a look.

"I'm not going on the dance machine. That's for girls!" He told her.

"What, are you chicken?" She teased him, smiling.

"No way! I just don't want to play a girl's game." He said defensively.

After Toby wriggled his way out of playing on the dance machine, he and Sarah went for lunch in a nearby café. Sarah enjoyed spending quality time with Toby and she wished she had done it more often. When she left to become Goblin Queen she would miss her little brother profoundly. It tugged at her heart to think she would be leaving him behind.

Toby snapped her out of her thoughts by asking what she was going to eat.

"Oh, um, I don't know," She said in a daze, grabbing the menu. "What would you like?"

"I can get anything I want off the menu?" He asked, eyes alit.

"Of course you can. Why wouldn't you be able to… Let me guess, you're never allowed to eat any of the nice things off the menu, am I right?" She asked. Toby nodded.

"You get whatever you want, kiddo." She smiled, and Toby scanned the menu, unsure of what to pick from the many greasy, calorie-laden but delicious choices.

In the booth beside them sat a couple and their two children; a boy of about ten and a girl who looked around three. Sarah smiled at the mother who smiled back. Toby and Sarah looked over as the father picked up the little girl and tossed her into the air, her laughter ringing through the café. The mother was laughing too, and said "Jeff, put her down, honey, we are in a public place." Jeff laughed and kissed the top of the little girls red hair.

"Now, darling, we're just having some fun, aren't we petal?" The little girl nodded her head and hugged her father. Jeff then ruffled the hair of the little boy and said "Well done on winning your football match, champ. Your mother and I are so proud of you."

"We sure are, sweetie. You can pick anything from the menu because you did so well."

It made Sarah smile to see the love and warmth these parents had for their children. She hoped she and Jareth could have the same thing one day. Sarah glanced back at Toby to ask if he had chosen what to eat yet when she noticed he had tears in his eyes.

"Toby? What's wrong?" Sarah asked, getting very worried. He just stared at the ground.

"Please tell me." Sarah asked, putting her hand on his arm.

"I want to go back to your house" He said, rubbing his moist eyes.

"But why?" Sarah asked, confused.

"I said I want to go back to your house." His voice was that of anger, and Sarah didn't want to get into this with him in a public place. Besides, he was upset and it would be better if they just left.

"Ok," she said calmly "let's go."

The car ride home was silent, the occasional sniffle coming from Toby. Sarah couldn't understand what was wrong; they were having such a fun time and then Toby's emotions changed, like a switch had been pressed. When they got into her apartment Toby went straight into the guest room and shut the door. Sarah came to the conclusion that he needed a little time to himself and would come back to talk to him later.

She went into her bedroom and threw herself onto the bed and sighed. She replayed the whole scene over and over in her head, trying to see what the problem was. Sarah couldn't figure it out. After about fifteen minutes of racking her brain for answers, Sarah went to her guest room and knocked on the door.

"Toby? Can I come in?" She asked nervously, not knowing what he would say.

There was no answer so Sarah opened the door and found Toby lying on the bed, face down into his pillow, soft sobs erupting from him. Sarah's heart broke. She rushed over to him and sat beside his bed.

"Hey, what's wrong, sport?" She asked as gently as she could without letting him hear the distress in her voice. She didn't want to upset him even more by showing him she was herself upset. Sarah rubbed Toby's back while he continued to cry.

"Please, Toby. I am so worried about you. Please tell me what's the matter. Please." It was getting hard to keep the desperation out of her voice. Toby mumbled something inaudible into his pillow.

"What was that? I couldn't hear you?" Sarah asked.

Relief flooded through her as Toby sat up on the bed. He wiped away the tears that has fallen down his face. Sarah put her hand on his shoulder and rubbed it, trying to comfort the poor lad.

"It's dad and my mom," He managed to choke out. "They're fighting a lot."

Sarah blinked, confused. She didn't realise her dad and Karen were having problems. When she visited them and spoke to them on the phone everything seemed perfectly normal.

"Oh, buddy." Sarah said sympathetically "I'm sorry. What are they fighting about?"

"I don't know. They never do it in front of me. Its usually at night in their bedroom. They think I can't hear them but I can." He let out a large sob. "But I heard them talking about divorce."

Toby burst into tears and threw himself into Sarah's arms. Sarah hugged him tight and sat there bewildered. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. No wonder Toby had been so depressed and angry, he was having to listen to his parents argue every night. She remembered when she was young and her father and mother were still married. They used fight all the time, while Sarah hid under the covers of her bed, frightened and crying. She thought her heart was going to explode with all the pain she was feeling.

"Oh, Toby" She said, tears running down her own face. She wiped them away with the back of her hand before he could see them.

"Listen, buddy, sometimes adults say things they don't mean. I'm sure dad and your mom will work things out." She tried to comfort him.

"No they won't. They're going to get divorced, I heard them."

" No, don't say that, sport. Look, I'll talk to them and try and see what's going on ok? The don't realise you can hear them. You know dad and your mom would never hurt you on purpose, right?"

Toby pulled back and looked at his big sister. He had kept this inside for so long and thought he could deal with it. But seeing that loving family at the café had made him realise that his mom and dad were never that nice to each other any more, and that made him sad.

"Thank you, Sarah." He said. Sarah smiled at him.

"That's what big sisters are for. I don't want you to worry any more. And if there's something bothering you again, I want you to come to me and not hold it in. Ok?"

"Ok." He replied, but knew he was lying. Toby would never tell Sarah about the horrible dreams he's been having, about how those monsters seem so life-like and when he goes to sleep at night it feels as if they are in the room with him. She would never believe him anyway even if he did tell her.

Later that night, Jareth immediately noticed that something wasn't right with Sarah. Her eyes had no sparkle, and her beautiful smile had vanished. Sarah explained to Jareth what happened with Toby and he held her and stroked her hair as she cried. It hurt him to see his Sarah so upset.

Sarah decided to contact her dad and Karen tomorrow. She just couldn't face doing it tonight. She tossed and turned all night and couldn't sleep. Jareth did his best to try and calm her down but Sarah couldn't get the image of her little brother breaking down in tears out of her head, and thought about how on earth she would bring this up to Karen and her dad. But no matter how uncomfortable it would be, she had to do it, for Toby. As Sarah had said to him, that's what big sisters were for. And she wasn't going to let him down.

A/N: Awww. Don't you just feel awful for Toby? Will Sarah be able to straighten things out? And will she get her big break working for Au Courant magazine? I'm having so much fun writing this. Keep up the encouragement guys! Ami xxx


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